Cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats and method of controlling the same

ABSTRACT

A cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats and a method of controlling the same, which can control the cooling or heating temperature by sensing the temperature of air before the air is introduced into a cooling and heating module. The apparatus includes: a blower fan installed in a housing so as to forcibly blow cool or hot air to an air supply channel of a vehicle seat; a temperature sensor mounted in the housing at a location at which the temperature sensor comes into contact with sucked air and senses a temperature of the sucked air; and a control unit receiving a temperature signal from the temperature sensor and controlling a cooling or heating temperature according to a characteristic value that corresponds to a state of the sucked air and is selected from characteristic values stored therein.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No.10-2012-0001051, filed on Jan. 4, 2012, the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to in general, to a cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats and a method of controlling the apparatusand, more particularly, to a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats and a method of controlling the apparatus, which can control thecooling or heating temperature by sensing the temperature of air beforethe air is introduced into a cooling and heating module.

BACKGROUND

A vehicle is generally provided with an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, andAir-conditioning) system that is an air conditioning apparatus, in whichthe HVAC system can perform a variety of air conditioning functions,such as ventilation, cooling and heating, in the vehicle when a driveroperates the system, thereby providing a comfortable air-conditionedenvironment to a driver and passengers of the vehicle. The HVAC systemcan be actuated when a driver or a passenger manipulates a controlswitch that is provided in a lower part of a right side of a steeringwheel. In the HVAC system, an air ventilation passage can be controlledand an air conditioner compressor can be started by operating anautomatic temperature control unit.

Further, a vehicle seat that provides a comfortable sitting feel to aperson by a cushion is also provided with a variety of handy functionaldevices. In recent years, a cooling and heating apparatus has beeninstalled in the vehicle seat. In an initial stage, vehicle seat heatingapparatuses are generally used in which a heating wire is installed in avehicle seat and provides a comfortable warm environment to a driver whodrives in a winter season. However, such vehicle seat heatingapparatuses are problematic in that they cannot perform a coolingoperation although they can perform an efficient heating operation.

To overcome the above-mentioned problem, a thermoelement assembly isused to selectively cool or heat the vehicle seat. In a vehicle seat airconditioning apparatus using the thermoelement assembly as a heatsource, a functional mesh is provided in which an air passage or an airventilation structure that can allow air to freely pass is formed andair generated by the thermoelement assembly used as the heat source issupplied (blown) to the functional mesh so that the surface of thefunctional vehicle seat can be retained at a temperature desired by aperson.

However, the conventional cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats is problematic in that a temperature sensor is mounted to a heatexchanger and senses the cooling or heating temperature and controls thetemperature of heat that is dissipated from the heat exchanger based onthe sensed temperature, so that the conventional cooling and heatingapparatus cannot precisely control the temperature of air that isprovided to a user.

Further, another problem of the conventional cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats resides in that the temperature of air thathas just passed through the heat exchanger is different from thetemperature of air that is discharged from a vehicle seat, so that theconventional cooling and heating apparatus cannot precisely control thetemperature of air that is provided to a user.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind theabove problems occurring in the related art, and the present inventionis intended to propose a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seatsand a method of controlling the apparatus, which senses the temperatureof air before the air is introduced into a cooling and heating moduleand controls the operational temperature of the cooling and heatingmodule based on the sensed temperature, thereby improving thesatisfaction of users.

In order to achieve the above object, according to one aspect of thepresent invention, there is provided a cooling and heating apparatus forvehicle seats, comprising: a blower fan installed in a housing so as toforcibly blow cool or hot air to an air supply channel that is providedin a vehicle seat; a temperature sensor that is mounted in the housingat a location at which the temperature sensor comes into contact withair sucked by the blower fan and that senses a temperature of the suckedair; and a control unit receiving a temperature signal indicative of thetemperature of the sucked air sensed by the temperature sensor andcontrolling a cooling or heating temperature according to acharacteristic value that corresponds to a state of the sucked air andis selected from characteristic values stored therein.

In one embodiment, the housing may be provided with a cooling andheating module for performing a heat exchanging operation with the airblown by the blower fan.

Further, it is preferred that the temperature sensor be placed betweenthe blower fan and the cooling and heating module.

Further, when the cooling and heating apparatus is installed in each ofa back part and a seat part of vehicle seat, the control unit mayindependently control the respective cooling and heating apparatuses.

Further, it is preferred that the cooling and heating module be formedusing a peltier element.

Further, it is preferred that the temperature sensor be mounted to athrough hole that is formed in a predetermined portion of the housing.

Further, it is preferred that the temperature sensor be mounted to amounting plate, the mounting plate being mounted to an inner surface ofthe housing a bonding material.

Further, it is preferred that the mounting plate be made of atransparent material.

Further, it is preferred that the temperature sensor be mounted to amounting plate, the mounting plate being provided with a fixing hole soas to be engaged with a fixing protrusion that is formed on an innersurface of the housing.

Further, it is preferred that a heat insulating hole be formed throughthe housing on a surface on which the cooling and heating module comesinto contact with the housing.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda method of controlling the cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats, the method comprising: a sensing step of sensing a temperature ofair that has been sucked by the blower fan but is not yet cooled orheated by the cooling and heating module; a determining step ofdetermining whether the temperature of air sensed in the sensing step isincluded within a preset temperature range; and a controlling step ofcontrolling the operation of the cooling and heating module so as toincrease or reduce the cooling or heating capacity of the cooling andheating module according to a characteristic value corresponding to astate of the sucked air when the determining step determines that thereis a temperature difference between the sensed temperature of air andthe preset temperature range.

In an embodiment, the controlling step may be performed by controllingthe voltage of a peltier element that forms the cooling and heatingmodule or by controlling the rotating speed of the blower fan.

As described above, the cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seatsand the method of controlling the apparatus according to the presentinvention is advantageous in that the apparatus and method can sense anair temperature that is equal to that of air which comes into contactwith a user, that is, the apparatus and method can sense the temperatureof air that is not yet cooled or heated by the cooling and heatingmodule, and the apparatus and method can control the operation of thecooling and heating module based on the sensed temperature of the air,thereby improving the satisfaction of users.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of thepresent invention will be more clearly understood from the followingdetailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a cooling and heating apparatus forvehicle seats according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a temperature sensor mountingpart shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrating a cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating a cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view illustrating a cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats according to a fourth embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a method of controlling the cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats according to a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinbelow, preferred embodiments of a cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats according to the present invention will be describedin detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a cooling and heating apparatus forvehicle seats according to a first embodiment of the present invention,FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating atemperature sensor mounting part shown in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats according to the first embodiment of the present invention isinstalled in a vehicle seat 1. Here, the cooling and heating apparatus10 is installed in at least one of the back part 1 a and the seat part 1b of the vehicle seat 1. When the cooling and heating apparatus 10 isinstalled in only one of the back part 1 a and the seat part 1 b of thevehicle seat 10, it is preferred that the apparatus be configured insuch a way that the processed air of the apparatus can be guided from apart having the apparatus to another part having no apparatus so thatthe processed air can be discharged from both parts to a user who sitsin the vehicle seat. Further, when the cooling and heating apparatus 10is installed in each of the back part 1 a and the seat part 1 b of thevehicle seat 1, it is preferred that the cooling and heating apparatuses10 of respective parts be configured in such a way that the apparatusescan independently control the cooling or heating temperatures thereofaccording to the temperatures of inlet air that are sensed by respectivetemperature sensors 40 which will be described later herein, althoughthe cooling and heating apparatuses 10 of the respective parts may becontrolled to provide the same cooling or heating temperature.

The cooling and heating apparatus 10 includes a blower fan 11 that isinstalled in a housing 13 so as to forcibly guide processed cool or hotair to an air supply channel 17 which is provided in the vehicle seat 1,a cooling and heating module 20 that performs a heat exchange operationwith air blown by the blower fan 11, a temperature sensor 40 that isplaced between the blower fan 13 and the cooling and heating module 20,and a control unit 50 that receives a temperature signal indicative ofthe temperature of air sensed by the temperature sensor 40 and controlsthe cooling or heating temperature of the cooling and heating module 20.Here, the cooling and heating module 20 is typically configured in theform of a heat exchanger. In the present invention, the cooling andheating module 20 will be described as a heat exchanger using a peltierelement, as an example.

The temperature sensor 40 is inserted into the housing 13 through athrough hole 14 that is formed through the housing 13, and the sensor 40is fixed to the housing 13 in the inserted state. Here, the inside endhaving the temperature sensor 40 has a diameter that is slightly largerthan the diameter of the through hole 14, thereby preventing theinserted temperature sensor 40 from being undesirably removed from thethrough hole 14.

In the present invention, the cooling and heating module 20 is describedas a heat exchanger using a peltier element, as an example. However, itshould be understood that the cooling and heating module 20 of thisinvention may be configured in the form of a variety of heat exchangers,in addition to the heat exchanger using the peltier element.

When the cooling and heating module 20 using the peltier element isinstalled in the apparatus 10, the air supply channel 17 and an airoutlet channel 19 are formed in the housing 13 so as to guide cool orhot air processed by the peltier element to the vehicle seat 1.

Further, a heat insulating hole 18 is formed through the housing 13 at alocation at which the cooling and heating module 20 comes into contactwith the housing 13. Here, the heat insulating hole 18 functions torestrict the heat of the cooling and heating module 20 from beingtransferred to the temperature sensor 40 through the housing 13.

Hereinbelow, a method of controlling the cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats according to a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention will be described with reference to FIG. 7. As shown in FIG.7, the method includes a sensing step S1 of sensing a temperature of airthat has been sucked by the blower fan 11 after the cooling and heatingapparatus of a ventilative vehicle seat was turned on, but the air isnot yet cooled or heated by the cooling and heating module 20, adetermining step S2 of determining whether the temperature of air sensedin the sensing step S1 is included within a preset temperature range,and a controlling step S3 of controlling the operation of the coolingand heating module 20 so as to increase or reduce the cooling or heatingcapacity of the cooling and heating module 20 when the determining stepS2 determines that there is a temperature difference between the sensedtemperature of air and the preset temperature range. However, when thedetermining step S2 determines that there is no temperature differencebetween the sensed temperature of air and the preset temperature range,a present state maintaining step S4 is performed to maintain the presentstate of the apparatus. In the method, the controlling step S3 isperformed by controlling the voltage of the peltier element that formsthe cooling and heating module 20 or by controlling the rotating speedof the blower fan 11. After the controlling step S3 is ended, thesensing step S1 is performed again.

When the blower fan 11 of the cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats starts to blow air, the blown air passes over the temperaturesensor 40 and is guided to the cooling and heating module 20. In theabove state, the temperature sensor 40 performs the sensing step S1 ofsensing the temperature of the blown air. In the determining step S2, itis determined whether the sensed temperature of air is included withinthe preset temperature range or not. When it is determined that thesensed temperature of air is included within the preset temperaturerange, the operation of the cooling and heating module 20 and theoperation of the blower fan 11 are maintained in respective presentstates.

However, when it is determined that the sensed temperature of air is notincluded within the preset temperature range, the controlling step S3 isperformed in which the cooling or heating capacity of the cooling andheating module 20 is increased or reduced based on a characteristicvalue corresponding to the temperature of sucked air. Here, thecharacteristic value means a value that is produced by previouslyprogramming the heat exchanging characteristics of sucked air in thecontrol unit 50 according to properties of the sucked air. Thecharacteristic value is a value that is produced by a previouscalculation which was performed based on the characteristics of thecooling and heating module 20 according to the temperature of sucked airand the temperature difference between the sucked air and the presettemperature range. The characteristic value is a reference value thatcan be used to provide a constant cooling or heating temperature evenwhen the temperature of sucked air varies. In other words, thecharacteristic value is the reference value that can be used as a valuefor quickly and greatly increasing the cooling or heating capacity ofthe cooling and heating apparatus in proportion to the value of thetemperature difference.

The air that is discharged from the vehicle seat 1 to a user is equal tothe air that is sucked by the blower fan 11 so that the air sensed bythe temperature sensor 40 is most similar to the air discharged from thevehicle seat 1.

In the present invention, the operation of the cooling and heatingmodule 20 and the operation of the blower fan 11 can be controlled inresponse to a variation in the air that is introduced into the coolingand heating module 20 so that the temperature of air can be quicklycontrolled.

In the cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats, the temperaturesensor 20 is placed at a location in front of the cooling and heatingmodule 20, thereby sensing the temperature of practically sucked air.Further, the heat exchanging characteristics of the cooling and heatingmodule 20 are determined according to the temperature of air sucked intothe cooling and heating module 20 and are programmed in the control unit50 so that, even when the temperature of sucked air quickly varies, thecontrol unit 50 can control the operational power of the cooling andheating module 20 or the cooling or heating capacity of the module 20 soas to discharge constant temperature air (to the vehicle seat). Here, itis preferred that the control of the capacity of the cooling and heatingmodule 20 be realized by controlling the voltage of the peltier elementthat forms the cooling and heating module 20 or by controlling therotating speed of the blower fan 11.

Further, when the cooling and heating apparatus is configured in such away that respective cooling and heating apparatuses are installed in theback part 1 a and in the seat part 1 b of the vehicle seat 1, it ispreferred that the respective apparatuses 10 be independently controlledusing respective characteristic values that are stored in the controlunit 50.

Further, in a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats accordingto a second embodiment of the present invention, the temperature sensor40 is mounted to a surface of a mounting plate 15, as shown in FIG. 4.The mounting plate 15 is mounted to an inner surface of the housing 13using a bonding material 15 a, such as a double-sided tape. Here, it ispreferred that the mounting plate 15 be made of a transparent material.

When the temperature sensor 40 is mounted to the housing theabove-mentioned mounting structure, work efficiency during a process ofproducing the apparatus can be increased and production cost of theapparatus can be reduced.

With the exception of the structure for mounting the temperature sensor40 to the housing 13, the general shape and operation of the cooling andheating apparatus for vehicle seats according to the second embodimentof the present invention remain the same as in the first embodiment ofthe present invention.

Further, in a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats accordingto a third embodiment of the present invention, the temperature sensor40 is mounted to a surface of a mounting plate 16, as shown in FIG. 5. Afixing hole 16 b is formed through the mounting plate 16, and a fixingprotrusion 16 a is provided on the inner surface of the housing 13 so asto be inserted into the fixing hole 16 b. Here, to prevent the mountingplate 16 from being undesirably removed from the fixing protrusion 16 a,the end of the fixing protrusion 16 a may be configured to have adiameter that is greater than the inner diameter of the fixing hole 16 bor the end of the fixing protrusion 16 a may be welded to the mountingplate 16 after inserting the fixing protrusion 16 a into the fixing hole16 b.

With the exception of the structure for mounting the temperature sensor40 to the housing 13, the general shape and operation of the cooling andheating apparatus for vehicle seats according to the third embodiment ofthe present invention remain the same as in the first embodiment of thepresent invention.

In a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats according to afourth embodiment of the present invention, the temperature sensor 40 ismounted to the housing 13 by being inserted into a through hole 14 thatis formed through the housing 13, as shown in FIG. 6. In thisembodiment, the temperature sensor 40 is mounted to a base 41. Radialprotrusions 42 are formed in the base 41 by extending from the base 41in radial directions. Further, radial slots 14 b are formed in thethrough hole 14 so as to receive the respective radial protrusions 42therein. To mount the temperature sensor 40 to the housing, thetemperature sensor 40 that is mounted to the base 41 is inserted intothe through hole 14. In the above state, the radial protrusions 42 passthrough the respective radial slots 14 b and are inserted into thehousing 13. When the base 41 is rotated at a predetermined angle afterthe radial protrusions are completely inserted into the housing 13, theradial protrusions 42 are caught by the edge of the through hole 14 sothat the inserted state of the temperature sensor 40 inside the housingcan be maintained.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has beendescribed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art willappreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions arepossible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the inventionas disclosed in the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cooling and heating apparatus for vehicleseats, comprising: a blower fan installed in a housing so as to forciblyblow cool or hot air to an air supply channel that is provided in avehicle seat; a temperature sensor that is mounted in the housing at alocation at which the temperature sensor comes into contact with airsucked by the blower fan and that senses a temperature of the suckedair; and a control unit receiving a temperature signal indicative of thetemperature of the sucked air sensed by the temperature sensor andcontrolling a cooling or heating temperature according to acharacteristic value that corresponds to a state of the sucked air andis selected from characteristic values stored therein.
 2. The coolingand heating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 1, whereinthe housing is provided with a cooling and heating module for performinga heat exchanging operation with the air blown by the blower fan.
 3. Thecooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 2,wherein the temperature sensor is placed between the blower fan and thecooling and heating module.
 4. The cooling and heating apparatus forvehicle seats as set forth in claim 2, wherein, when the cooling andheating apparatus is installed in each of a back part and a seat part ofvehicle seat, the control unit independently controls the respectivecooling and heating apparatuses.
 5. The cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats as set forth in claim 2, wherein the cooling andheating module is formed using a peltier element.
 6. The cooling andheating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 5, wherein thetemperature sensor is mounted to a through hole that is formed in apredetermined portion of the housing.
 7. The cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 5, wherein thetemperature sensor is mounted to a mounting plate, the mounting platebeing mounted to an inner surface of the housing a bonding material. 8.The cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth inclaim 7, wherein the mounting plate is made of a transparent material.9. The cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth inclaim 5, wherein the temperature sensor is mounted to a mounting plate,the mounting plate being provided with a fixing hole so as to be engagedwith a fixing protrusion that is formed on an inner surface of thehousing.
 10. The cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats as setforth in claim 5, wherein a heat insulating hole is formed through thehousing on a surface on which the cooling and heating module comes intocontact with the housing.
 11. The cooling and heating apparatus forvehicle seats as set forth in claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor ismounted to a through hole that is formed in a predetermined portion ofthe housing.
 12. The cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seats asset forth in claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor is mounted to amounting plate, the mounting plate being mounted to an inner surface ofthe housing a bonding material.
 13. The cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats as set forth in claim 12, wherein the mounting plateis made of a transparent material.
 14. The cooling and heating apparatusfor vehicle seats as set forth in claim 1, wherein the temperaturesensor is mounted to a mounting plate, the mounting plate being providedwith a fixing hole so as to be engaged with a fixing protrusion that isformed on an inner surface of the housing.
 15. The cooling and heatingapparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 1, wherein a heatinsulating hole is formed through the housing on a surface on which thecooling and heating module comes into contact with the housing.
 16. Amethod of controlling a cooling and heating apparatus for vehicle seatsas set forth in claim 1, the method comprising: a sensing step ofsensing a temperature of air that has been sucked by a blower fan but isnot yet cooled or heated by a cooling and heating module; a determiningstep of determining whether the temperature of air sensed in the sensingstep is included within a preset temperature range; and a controllingstep of controlling an operation of the cooling and heating module so asto increase or reduce a cooling or heating capacity of the cooling andheating module according to a characteristic value corresponding to astate of the sucked air when the determining step determines that thereis a temperature difference between the sensed temperature of air andthe preset temperature range.
 17. The method of controlling the coolingand heating apparatus for vehicle seats as set forth in claim 16,wherein the controlling step is performed by controlling a voltage of apeltier element that forms the cooling and heating module or bycontrolling a rotating speed of the blower fan.